IDW TMNT #12

Issue #12 of IDW's TMNT is finally here, one full year of the main book has come to an end. What an end it was too. There is a lot that can be said about the title yet the main thing that always comes to my mind is that it is well done. You can definitely tell the team behind this love the characters and are trying to do their best. This issue marks the end of a year but also marks the end of Dan Duncan drawing the turtles, making it a doubly important issue.

For a year his art work has been the main source of TMNT that we have seen. It has grown from the first issue to the last. Love it or hate it, if you've been reading this title you've come to accept him. It is with sadness that he leaves us I think. I've really liked his art work. Here is to wishing him well on his future projects and who knows, maybe we will see him guest artist on future issues.

Now to actually get to talking about this issue. It only took a year but we finally got a throw back to the original Mirage cover. It is great to see this in another style, and I think it really shows off Duncan's TMNT. It is a fitting for his last cover too. All three covers are great honestly. I picked up A and B myself. Normally I just get one but I couldn't decide which I liked better.

The story of this issue is the final chapter to the fight with Shredder and the Foot Clan that started in the Leonardo Micro issue. This issue pretty much picks up where the last one left off. Our group of heros have been taken to the Foot headquarters by Angle and her Purple Dragons so they can save Splinter. Not a lot of story happens in this issue, which isn't a bad thing, just a lot of ninja action. We see our four Turtles and Casey take on Shredder and The Foot.

Past basically being one giant battle issue nothing else really happens. We get one page about Krang and Stockmen are up to. We see Old Hob get shot by Stockmen also. The last we see of this mutant cat is he is laying on the airstrip as Krang mentions plan B. So it is unsure of what will become of Old Hob. My personal hope is we haven't seen the last of him.

The end of the issue sees April thanking Splinter for saving her life when he was a little rat also which is a nice touch. Over all the story was told in the previous issues and this was the action beat. We don't get anymore info about Shredder or how he is alive still. That seems to be being saved for the four issue mico that is coming out later this year.

As an issue by its self this one doesn't stand up. Then again it isn't supposed to. This is the pay off from the whole last year. We finally see the fight between these two clans. While it could have been so much more it was great for being what it was. Not a good place to jump on, but a good place to end a 12 issue run, 19 if you count the mini's.